A manufacturer stung by criticism of what he claims is a devastating new armor-piercing bullet, delayed its production Wednesday as firearms experts questioned whether the ammunition could perform as described. David A. Keen said his decision was in response to law enforcement fears that potent Black Rhino rounds would fall into the hands of criminals. He said work would go ahead on .

California is lining up to become the largest state to ban the sale of cosmetic products, such as facial scrubs, containing tiny plastic beads that find their way into waterways and the ocean. Assemblyman Richard Bloom (D-Santa Monica) plans to introduce a bill Thursday that would ban the sale of products containing the microbeads, which are too small to be removed by water treatment processes after they drain out of sinks and showers. A New York legislator introduced a similar measure Tuesday after scientists found high concentrations of the tiny exfoliating beads in the state's lakes and other waters.

October 3, 1991 | WILLIAM TUOHY and MARLENE CIMONS, TIMES STAFF WRITERS

The British government on Wednesday banned the drug Halcion, the world's most widely prescribed sleeping pill. Halcion, and other medicines containing triazolam, have been associated with psychological side effects, particularly memory loss and depression, an announcement from the Department of Health said.

Apple has appealed a federal judge's denial of its request to ban 26 Samsung products that were part of a sweeping patent infringement case it won in August. In that case, a jury awarded Apple $1 billion after finding that Samsung had violated several mobile-related patents held by Apple. Following that verdict, Apple had asked the judge to increase the size of the awards, as well as permanently ban the 26 Samsung products in question. PHOTOS: Devices in the Apple Samsung trial But in December, Judge Lucy Koh denied Apple's motion to block the sale of the smartphones - including the Fascinate, Epic 4G and Galaxy S II. Koh wrote in her decision that Apple had failed to make the case that the features covered by the patents played a decisive role in consumers' purchase decisions.

The sale, manufacture and distribution of plastic foam products, such as insulated coffee cups, made with harmful chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) will be banned in Los Angeles starting next July 1, the City Council decided Tuesday. Without debate, the council approved a proposed ordinance sponsored by Councilman Zev Yaroslavsky last November. But the ban will not remove plastic foam products from use.

State health investigators staked out a warehouse early Friday, then placed an embargo on more than 8 million capsules and tablets of a weight-loss product called Cal-Ban 3000 that is suspected of causing intestinal obstructions. Officials from D&F Industries, a health-products manufacturer with offices in Anaheim and Orange, could not be reached for comment Friday.

Doctors angry over the American Medical Assn.'s deal to lend its name to Sunbeam Corp. on Tuesday approved a ban on AMA endorsements of products the group doesn't produce. The organization's house of delegates also agreed to appoint a committee to investigate how the Sunbeam deal slipped through, apparently without approval from the board of trustees. "The AMA is against product endorsement, and this organization has made a move to make sure everyone knows that," said Dr.

Medications banned or highly restricted in the United States because of severe, and sometimes fatal, side effects are being smuggled in from Mexico and peddled out of back-room shops across Southern California. These potentially dangerous drugs, which multinational pharmaceutical companies market in Mexico, where regulations and enforcement are less stringent, have shown up consistently in more than 70 raids over the last year of markets, dress shops and swap meets catering to Latino immigrants.

Eight-year-old Abdel Mohsen Medwahi lived for Pokemon. Pokemon trading cards. Pokemon comic books. Pokemon clothing. Pokemon toys. Everything and anything Pokemon. So it stunned his father, Omar, when the boy solemnly reported the troubling news he had just heard from friends: " 'Pokemon' means 'There is no God in the universe.' " As a faithful Muslim in Saudi Arabia, a devoutly Muslim country, Omar Medwahi decided to check up on the seemingly harmless make-believe creatures.

California drivers chafing at the ban on holding cellphones can soon forget about texting, too: Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has banned motorists from sending, writing or reading messages on electronic devices starting Jan. 1. Schwarzenegger signed legislation Wednesday that imposes a $20 fine for a first offense of texting while driving and a $50 fine for any subsequent violation.

Apple has decided to appeal a federal judge's ruling that denied the company's request to ban 26 Samsung products. In August, a jury ruled that the Samsung products had infringed a handful of Apple patents and ordered the South Korean tech giant to pay $1.05 billion in damages to the maker of the iPhone. Apple then sought a potentially more devastating punishment against Samsung by requesting a permanent injunction against those products....

When she moved here in the 1980s, Carri Stevens was baffled. This is Nevada, so where are all the casinos? she wondered. Where were the one-armed bandits that chime their "ding-ding-ding!" cacophony at seemingly every gas station, restaurant, pharmacy and supermarket? She soon discovered that Boulder City is the only major city in the state where gaming is banned. And locals don't miss it one bit. "Tourists can't believe it," said Stevens, who with her husband, Al, runs the Coffee Cup cafe.

Samsung isn't going away without a fight. A day after Apple said it would seek to ban eight Samsung smartphones from sale in the U.S., the South Korean electronics giant shot back Tuesday with a short statement: "We will take all necessary measures to ensure the availability of our products in the U.S. market. " Apple scored an overwhelming victory in federal court in San Jose last week when a jury sided with the Cupertino, Calif., tech company in the billion-dollar patent infringement case.

Chris Carpenter pitches for a team once owned by America's largest brewery in a stadium that shares its name with a brand of beer. But should Carpenter wish to toast any of his victories this season he'll have to wait until he leaves the ballpark. That's because the St. Louis Cardinals don't allow beer or other alcoholic beverages in their clubhouse. Same for the Colorado Rockies, who play at Coors Field, and the Milwaukee Brewers, who are not only named after beer makers but play in a stadium (Miller Park)

The Senate on Tuesday voted to relax a long-standing ban on bringing loaded guns into national parks, an outcome that underscored divisions among Democrats over the politically charged issue of regulating firearms. The vote was 67 to 29, with 27 Democrats and one independent joining 39 Republicans to approve an amendment overturning federal rules that required gun owners to carry their firearms unloaded and stored while visiting national parks.

Government medical advisors recommended a ban on Darvon, a prescription medicine that's been used to treat pain for more than 50 years but has left a trail of problems such as addiction and suicide. A Food and Drug Administration advisory panel voted 14 to 12 to recommend withdrawing Darvon after a daylong hearing examining its risks and benefits. The consumer group Public Citizen had petitioned the FDA to withdraw Darvon because the drug offers relatively weak pain relief and poses an overdose risk, with the potential to be used in suicides.

The federal Food and Drug Administration is warning that a supposed aphrodisiac distributed by a Sherman Oaks company is suspected of having caused the seizures that stopped the heart of a Virginia man. The capsules, which come in a box labeled "Spanish Fly Pills, Legendary Sex Exciter," are distributed by a company listed on the box as Pleasure Products. The address given is a post office box in Sherman Oaks.

The Clinton administration Thursday announced that it will ban all over-the-counter sales and most nonagricultural uses of Dursban, one of the most common household and garden pesticides, but its chief manufacturer insisted that the chemical is safe and vowed to continue selling it overseas. The Environmental Protection Agency announced the agreement with Dow AgroSciences and other manufacturers to remove the chemical, also known as chlorpyrifos and sold under another trade name, Lorsban.

In a concession to pediatricians, drug companies warned parents not to give over-the-counter cold remedies to children under 4. Doctors doubt the drugs do children much good and worry about risks. The companies that make medications like Dimetapp and PediaCare also warned parents not to give antihistamines to kids to help them sleep. The new instructions are on packages that began hitting stores this week. Problems with over-the-counter cough and cold medicine send about 7,000 children to emergency rooms each year, with symptoms including hives, drowsiness and unsteady walking.

California drivers chafing at the ban on holding cellphones can soon forget about texting, too: Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has banned motorists from sending, writing or reading messages on electronic devices starting Jan. 1. Schwarzenegger signed legislation Wednesday that imposes a $20 fine for a first offense of texting while driving and a $50 fine for any subsequent violation.